The city of Seattle, Washington recently became yet another in a list of dozens to put the hurt on Yellow Pages publishers through an ordinance packed with regulations, restrictions and fees on phone book distribution. The Yellow Pages Association (YPA), along with major publishers Dex One Corp. and SuperMedia quickly hit back by filing suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

Making Sense of Nonsense

A couple of times each year or so, businesses and consumers receive printed Yellow Pages directories courtesy of local and national publishers. Seattle and other communities here and there might have us assume that these phone books end up completely unused and towering in landfill mountains, polluting the land. To which YPA says, “Rubbish.”

Is Anybody Using Those Phone Books?

Phone books have been around for a hundred or so odd years for a reason. When the electricity goes out, pizza needs ordered or it´s time to rent a car, millions of consumers reach for the Yellow Pages. And they do so billions of times each year. That´s right—billions with a “b.” Twelve billion references, in fact. Most importantly, 78% of those consumers make a purchase from a merchant they contacted from referencing the Yellow Pages, according to Burke Research.

Clearly, there has been a modest dip in usage of some headings or directories over the past ten years, but overall the medium continues to show strong advertiser participation and high usage, unlike newspapers and magazines that have suffered tremendous readership drops over the last few years. These are the same newspapers and magazines that arrive much more frequently and take up dramatically more space.

• Cost. It costs money to publish and distribute the books. Publishers have no interest in paying for a product to go unused.

• Sustainability. The Green Movement is arguably a good thing. That´s why the industry uses recycled paper and woodchips to produce directories. They´ve advanced pagination systems and made other modifications to cut 29 percent of paper use since 2006. Soy-based inks and non-toxic dyes are used for printing. Plus, the industry supports recycling and upcycling programs.

• Economics. Consumer needs are satisfied through Yellow Pages directories, and businesses make money from those sales.